jcjordan wrote:This is one of the reasons I always check the map course before every race.

I can't see a map of the course on VCC website now but text info there says the course is 70km...so that's 3 different distances I have for it now. I can understand distance being out by maybe a couple of hundred metres, but 7km?

Another reason not to compare TT times from previous races on "same course" as I mentioned to Twizzle in a previous post.

4th Race in 8 days (250kms)... And finally the legs are starting to work ( they have to to push my bulk around! )... Going off someone with a Garmin 810 it was 66.6 km with 1121m climbing... My iPhone always underestimates the climbing . Not exactly suited to me but I finished in the bunch and did a lot of policing with two team mates in the break.Gives me hope for next weekend (260kms over 3stages)...well hope to survive in the laughing group anyway .

jcjordan wrote:This is one of the reasons I always check the map course before every race.

I can't see a map of the course on VCC website now but text info there says the course is 70km...so that's 3 different distances I have for it now. I can understand distance being out by maybe a couple of hundred metres, but 7km?

Another reason not to compare TT times from previous races on "same course" as I mentioned to Twizzle in a previous post.

But I log every race on my Garmin, so I can compare.

But did you notice the paint marks for the first turn-around on Sat. were a few hundred metres back up the road? The start/finish points were not where I expected either, given I was a "test" rider for the course back in November. NSW races are supposed to have all points exactly as per the road approval, which is why usually the setup is done by a person from the maps placing star pickets & signage before the race marshals are sent out.

After feeling quite strong in last weeks race I decided that for this race I would try and conserve my energy and save myself for a final sprint. Although I've been racing for almost a year, I've never actually been in a position where I was amongst the action with 200m to go, generally I've been mid pack or in a small breakaway, so it was going to be the first test of my sprint in a race situation.

I don't know what I was thinking but 3 or so minutes into the race and I was 50m off the front with another rider working to make our breakaway stick. My heart rate was at 90% max and there was still about 40km left to race, so I was not exactly conserving my energy. After 2-3km I realised we weren't making any progress so I sat up and rejoined the bunch, my fellow breakaway rider continued on for another lap (approx 10km). I thought to myself "Okay, that was dumb, but there is still a lot of time to recover.". 5 minutes later I put in a small dig up the short hill and found myself off the front again, this didn't bother me though as I didn't have to dig too deep, but it was pointless. On the second last lap I put in another small dig up a minor hill and was off the front again, I think this keeps happening because I'm quite a bit lighter than the other racers so I can get up the hills fairly easy, but once I'm off the front in the wind my weak muscular endurance comes into play and I start suffering. Thankfully Nick realised the bunch were just leaving me out to dry and so closed the gap to put me out of my misery. As is clearly evident, I was not racing a smart race.

I finally settled down as the bell was rung for the last lap and got comfortable sitting on 4th or 5th wheel. With about 3km to go a strong rider attacked and got a gap of 50metres almost instantly. No one was willing/able to chase him down, but lucky for me the new (and very strong) rider in front of me was going to catch him or die trying, put simply I had a good wheel. The breakaway rider was swallowed up with 400m to go, and with nothing but air between the guys at the front and the finish line, the adrenaline got the better of the rider who was now in front of me (once again, a first time racer) and he launched his sprint. I couldn't believe my luck, with 400m to go I had my own lead out man who was insuring that I wasn't going to be swamped or boxed in. Before the race I had taken note of a car which was about 150m from the finish line, just before we passed the car I allowed a small (50cm) gap to form between me and the rider in front which I used to launch my sprint in the shelter of the slipstream. I finally passed the rider in front with 100m to go and ended up winning in my first bunch sprint by about a bike length!

Comparing my top speed to the top speeds of other riders' sprints from the crit season, I was a good 2-3kmph slower. This may be that the fast men weren't feeling good or perhaps it was because the road races are more than twice the length of the crits and so they weren't as fresh. Next weeks race includes some short sharp hills which should suit me, so if I do okay hopefully I will be in C grade soon

I was able to get the finish line photo from the race organisers, presumably the finish line is just left of the shot.

Edited - Spelling

Well raced Matt.I'm the other guy In the red/blue jersey on the white Cannondale.

It was my first road race (I've done a few crits before) so I really didn't know what to expect.My only plan going into the race was to sit close enough to the front and be in a good position to make a move should anything happen.

There weren't really any attacks and the ride set into a steady pace until there was about 1/4 lap (2.5-3km) to go.A few people picked up the pace and I followed, A few guys sprinted too early and in my overeagerness I chased them down and passed them but Matt caught me by surprise and sprinted to the win.

It was a bit tamer than the crits I've done before, almost like a quick group ride for the most part with a few solid efforts.

The plan is to keep up with my training, race a couple more in D to get my strategy sorted and hopefully make the jump to C by the end of the year.

After winning last week I decided that if I placed this week I would move myself up to C grade, I liked my chances as the Wandi circuit is quite hilly and I am quite light compared to most of the other riders. After the first lap it became evident that it was not going to be as easy as I had hoped, the pace up the hills had me at about 90% max HR and a couple strong riders kept the pace up on the flats too.

Half way through the 47km race the pace was really getting to me, I didn't feel like I was going to be dropped but I had all but written off my chances of getting involved in a bunch sprint. Luckily for me the last lap was the slowest of them all, the last 5km was ridden at a very slow pace as everyone was saving themselves for the sprint. Normally in this situation Nick would attack, luckily for me he was absent with a cold so everyone was allowed to recover before the final sprint.

With about a km to go I was second or third wheel, worrying that I was too far up front and was going to be badly positioned. The rider behind me (Lara?) attacked with about 600m to go, as she came past I was able to get on her wheel without too much difficulty. After a quick look back Lara (?) saw that a large group was on her wheel and she quickly began to fade. As she slowed I was worried that I would be swamped, we were just about to pass E grade on our left though so I knew I only had to worry about my right side. Arthur, who had been riding a really strong race, attacked with about 400m to go, one again I was able to get on his wheel and so coming around the final corner I was in second wheel. I was careful to hold my position for as long as I could because I knew I was boxing in a couple of strong riders who were taking the inside line around the corner. With 200m to go I started my sprint and came around Arthur. I quickly realised that I was badly geared and so had to adjust my hand position mid sprint to change, once I changed down I was able to lengthen my gap and eventually win

This was probably the hardest race I've ever ridden. I'm a little apprehensive about moving up a grade as I know for a fact I am not a particularly strong D grader (in regards to FTP), but I want to one day race A grade so I would rather come last in C then win D.

I had fun today ( not! )... Gastro for the last 24 hours, all night on the toilet... Massive stomach cramps for the 200k drive here. 10c and pouring rain for the start... Normally I would love that. 40ks in the stomach cramps were agony and I blew, even though there were about 20 or so behind me I never saw anyone for the next 60 km's ... Lost 20 minutes by the finish, not bad considering the wind... Not a great day on the bike.Hopefully tomorrow is better!

A one day race I would of pulled the pin... But when it's all payed for whether I go or not, I thought I might as well go and see , anyway gastro has past but the stomach still hurts and the legs are cooked from yesterday.

Short report this. Marginally shorter than my race. I've done one C grade crit and that not overly well. Today was the club championships. I assumed that it would be A/B/C grade as per usual but I was wrong. It was Under 40s, Over 40s and Non-NSCC Club racers. The over 40s and non-club racers did basically a B-grade race - 45 mins + 2 laps. Under 40s did a modified A-grade style race - 18 laps with sprints on laps 10,12,14,16 and 18. As a 38 yo in my second race I didn't have any delusions of standing on the podium...

Pace was quick from the off. Sitting on 40-45kmh. I was hanging on fine and even coping with the surges. As it's a hotdog course there were two hairpins. I coped with 6 brutal sprints but blew up on the 7th and never recovered. The poor sods left had to do another 29 of them. I had other family commitments that I would have been late to anyway so rather than just roll around for the next 45 mins I headed home somewhat humbled by the fitness level of some pretty quick riders. There were young juniors who hung on for a lot longer than me! Set a couple of PRs though.

Ahh well. Next fortnight is back to normal C grade. Getting trounced like that does up the motivation for specific training though!

Last week at Dog Hill was in my experience typical of a PDCC D grade road race, a couple of attacks, which get dragged back by the bunch fairly quickly. An attempted escape late in the piece and a bunch finish. That said the main agitator from the crit series was surprisingly quiet (I blame it on my cold).

Should get more interesting now, with Rob aka Redbull back racing, he kept the pace high for the 1st couple of laps this week, before his lack of race fitness showed. Give it a couple of weeks for me and Rob to get to fit, we should animate the races a lot more. Just don't let both of us get into a breakaway.

Matt aka cant_stop

Note to everybody, it was how Matt won the races, two weeks in a row, leaping out of a bunch of 15 riders to win by 3+ bikes lengths. That got him an invite to C grade.

Well I would have finished in the bunch today... But!.Meh...another 90km+ day in pouring rain and howling wind... Oh the joy. I got dropped at 10k mark but managed to get back on 5kms later through the cars. After that I started to feel "good" , but at the 70km mark after a very tight 120 degree turn at the start of a 1km climb I saw our "leader" had dropped a chain, but as I passed him I saw a guy run up his rear jamming his finger into something. So I thought instead of stopping I would climb at tempo and he would catch up quickly as he is a few grades above me and as a stagiare for Cofidis a few years back can climb like a rocket... But over the top and no sign of him, cars started passing me and someone hung out a window and said he was coming... A few cars later some one said he had abandoned , by then a 100 or so riders were disappearing from sight... Tried to get back on but never did, team mate arrive 10ks later behind our car but the commissaries shut us down ... After that I just rolled happily along at a pace that didn't hurt too much. Least the gastro is gone .Tomorrow will be better!...I hope

like Ozkaban, i did the Beauie Worlds, but as i'm a CCCC member, i was one of the poor souls riding in the other than club championship race. It was a handicap where A/B was expected to chase C/D. I was pursuaded to race in the A/B group. I should have known better. Pace was very high and soon i was dangling at the back. Dangling at the back at Beauie is the beginning of the end, and indeed the end came around 13' into the 45'+ race. I ended up in a 4 man group, still working very hard, but in no-man's-land. Note to self : re-introduce the Hour of Power of Bill Black in training schedule. I must say that the NSCC Club Championship is brutal, and these guys were still racing long after we finished.

Looking at the results of Saturday's ACTVCC race which I didn't attend it looks like the same burgs won B again. I don't understand why they weren't promoted after the first time they won. They are now up to at least the third win.

So that was Redbull who sat at the front for a lap and came very close to dropping a few people, very strong! I can't imagine him and you in a breakaway getting chased down, even if everyone was pulling turns :/

Good to see some other beauie racers posting here! I did the elite club champs race and won

It was an interesting format with points for sprints every 2nd lap from lap 10 onwards, I have never done that sort of thing before so quickly had to come up with some tactics. I won the first sprint which may have been a bit of a mistake because after that everyone turned their heads to me to chase any attacks! Overall the pace was a fair bit slower than a normal A grade race though - but also a bit longer. Being the club champs no one was really working together or letting anything go. I placed in another couple of sprints then won the final one which had some bonus points. A fun race, having that many sprints in a race was great for sprint practise!

Ross wrote:Looking at the results of Saturday's ACTVCC race which I didn't attend it looks like the same burgs won B again. I don't understand why they weren't promoted after the first time they won. They are now up to at least the third win.

It's a bit of an awkward one. They were a good few minutes down (2:30) on the slowest a grader. The only place they had any advantage at all was on the long descent. They were back a good couple of hundred metres just before the final turn. But, yeah, they are a very strong pairing at the moment.

Are you racing the handicap this weekend? I'm hoping I don't get handicapped beyond a grade. Especially if there is a small turnout.

My race was tough on a bike I picked up on the way to the race. Wasn't quite right. Felt like I struggled. We stayed together for most of the two laps. We broke on the final climb on the way out to the last turn and we were down to two. I upped the pace but I couldn't shake him. On the last bit of the undulating section before the descent I put in a max effort attack and got a small gap. Inspired by Jens I wasn't risking a sprint. From there it was absolute threshold all the way in a bid to stay away. Ended up pulling a 26 sec gap. My legs and lungs were screaming as I crossed the line.

mrgolf wrote:It's a bit of an awkward one. They were a good few minutes down (2:30) on the slowest a grader. The only place they had any advantage at all was on the long descent. They were back a good couple of hundred metres just before the final turn. But, yeah, they are a very strong pairing at the moment.

But the previous week they complained that they would suck on a hill course. Don't know why, as far as I can see, if your two riders are well matched then the only disadvantage a tandem has is with tight corners.

Are you racing the handicap this weekend? I'm hoping I don't get handicapped beyond a grade. Especially if there is a small turnout.

The club doesn't work that way. We will just all take the p**s out of you and more riders will ask to drop to B because they won't have a change of winning A.

I was referring to A2 and A1. Not too many A1s racing right now with downing, allbon and Burghardt not attending. IIRC, the handicap race last year had an A1 grade seperate.

On the tandem, my point is they still finished well outside of a grade and within seconds of b grade. The course had hills, but the downhills were the only thing that saved them. Every time I saw them as we passed they were well behind the front runners at the end of climbs. If it were Apollo, they would have been smashed. I am sure a stronger (bigger) group of bs might have changed the outcome. Also, those present didn't seem to know how to jump on the back of a tandem at the top of hills. From my experience chasing ash and don or ash and Paul, you have to be aggressive before they draw alongside and be ready to sprint.

mrgolf wrote:I was referring to A2 and A1. Not too many A1s racing right now with downing, allbon and Burghardt not attending. IIRC, the handicap race last year had an A1 grade seperate.

If there are small numbers, it is likely they will combine A1/A2 and split the difference on the time.

mrgolf wrote:On the tandem, my point is they still finished well outside of a grade and within seconds of b grade. The course had hills, but the downhills were the only thing that saved them. Every time I saw them as we passed they were well behind the front runners at the end of climbs. If it were Apollo, they would have been smashed. I am sure a stronger (bigger) group of bs might have changed the outcome. Also, those present didn't seem to know how to jump on the back of a tandem at the top of hills. From my experience chasing ash and don or ash and Paul, you have to be aggressive before they draw alongside and be ready to sprint.

There were a "coupla seconds" ahead of Mr Hanslip. The rest of the riders were miles behind.

Mick Carr was only 20 seconds off. But my point is more that they were a lot closer to B grade times than any A grade time. I am not trying to start an argument, but am just trying to point out that they are in a awkward position between two grades. Sometimes the courses put them in A grade territory, but on the hillier stuff, there isnt much in it.

But like I said, if there was a bigger B grade pack, perhaps the outcome might have been different. A few more aggressive climbers and the race would have been turned on its head.

So that was Redbull who sat at the front for a lap and came very close to dropping a few people, very strong! I can't imagine him and you in a breakaway getting chased down, even if everyone was pulling turns :/

Twas me.

Didn't feel too bad. Didn't have the depth of fitness to push too hard. Spent too much time in the hills and not enough time doing efforts and TTs.

Who is online

About the Australian Cycling Forums

The largest cycling discussion forum in Australia for all things bike; from new riders to seasoned bike nuts, the Australian Cycling Forums are a welcoming community where you can ask questions and talk about the type of bikes and cycling topics you like.